HYDERABAD: Abhishek Sharma lit up the IPL on Saturday with a spectacular 141 off 55 balls to steer Sunrisers Hyderabad to the second-highest successful chase in tournament history of 246 as they downed Punjab Kings by eight wickets.
Earlier, Nicholas Pooran continued his incredible form with 61 to help Lucknow Super Giants end Gujarat Titans’ winning streak of four matches, coming out on top by six wickets.
The 24-year-old Abhishek put on the best stand so far this season of 171 with opening partner Travis Head, who hit 66, in a chase achieved with nine balls to spare.
“We didn’t talk (about) anything,” Abhishek said of the mood ahead of the chase. “It was just natural play for us. The partnership boosted me up.”
Punjab hold the record winning chase of 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens last year.
Abhishek’s individual score is the third highest in IPL history behind Chris Gayle (175 not out for Bengaluru) and Brendon McCullum (158 not out for Kolkata) and the largest in 12 years.
“This one is very special, because I wanted to break that losing streak,” added Abhishek. “Losing four matches back to back was very tough. But we never talked about it in the team.”
Shreyas Iyer’s 82 and a late blitz of 34 by Marcus Stoinis steered Punjab to 245-6, but the total proved inadequate as the Sunrisers openers took their team off the bottom of the 10-team table with just a second win in six matches.
Abhishek started as he meant to go on, reaching his fifty in 19 balls.
Australia’s Head fell to leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal after hitting nine fours and three sixes in his 37-ball knock.
But Abhishek raised his century in only 40 balls as he roared, punched the air and waved a piece of paper with a message reading “this one for the orange army,” referencing the Sunrisers fans.
Arshdeep Singh eventually dismissed Abhishek, who hit 14 fours and 10 sixes, with 24 to win and Heinrich Klaasen saw Hyderabad home with an unbeaten 21 off 14 balls.
Earlier in Lucknow, opener Aiden Markram, who hit 58, and the in-form Pooran set up the home team’s chase of 181 before they secured victory over Gujarat with three balls to spare.
Markram shared partnerships of 65 with fellow opener Rishabh Pant and 58 with Pooran, who struck his fourth half-century of the campaign to go past Gujarat opener Sai Sudharsan as the leading runscorer this season with 349, at a remarkable strike-rate of 215.
“I think one thing is for sure is that we are happy to have Nicholas Pooran in our team,” said Pant of the West Indies star.
“You want someone like him on your side and not batting against you. The way he is reading the game right now, the way he is batting is phenomenal.”
Gujarat lost top spot in the 10-team table, with Lucknow behind in third with four wins from six matches.
South Africa’s Markram stepped up in the absence of his in-form opening partner Mitchell Marsh, who missed the match due to the illness of his daughter.
Skipper Pant was promoted to open but failed to strike form despite an early reprieve when Gujarat wicketkeeper Jos Buttler dropped a catch down the leg-side.
Pant hit four boundaries before he lofted fast bowler Prasidh Krishna to deep third man, falling for 21 from 18 balls.
Pant is still waiting to justify his record auction price of $3.21 million and has only managed 40 runs in five innings.
Pooran hammered his fifty in 23 balls before falling to Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan.
But he had already done the damage with one four and seven sixes in his 34-ball blitz.
Impact substitute Ayush Badoni hit an unbeaten 28 and sealed the win with a four and six after a late wobble.
Abhishek plunders 141 as Hyderabad pull off second-highest IPL chase
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Abhishek plunders 141 as Hyderabad pull off second-highest IPL chase
- 24-year-old Abhishek put on the best stand so far this season of 171 with opening partner Travis Head
Ronaldo is rested and returning his attention to an Asian Champions League title
- The Riyadh club, still yet to win a continental championship, is expected to progress to the last four
- Nassr’s Riyadh rival Al-Hilal have won a record four Asian titles and play Friday against Gwangju FC
Cristiano Ronaldo has rested and now is returning his attention to winning his first major trophy in Saudi Arabia.
Despite breaking the Saudi Pro League’s scoring record last season with 35 goals and leading the standings in this campaign, the 40-year-old Ronaldo is yet to collect any silverware since signing for Al-Nassr in December 2022.
On Saturday, he’ll be leading Al-Nassr against Japan-based Yokohama F.Marinos in the Asian Champions League Elite quarterfinals.
The Riyadh club, still yet to win a continental championship, is expected to progress to the last four, particularly after Ronaldo was rested this week for Al-Nassr’s domestic league win over Damac.
Even without the five-time Ballon d’Or winner, coach Stefano Pioli has a star-studded roster at his disposal. It includes Jhon Duran, signed from Aston Villa in January for over $100 million, former Liverpool star Sadio Mane and Spanish international defender Aymeric Laporte.
Al-Nassr also have home advantage, as all playoff games are taking place in Jeddah along the Red Sea coast.
“We’re now fully focused on Asia,” Pioli said Tuesday. “We have been working hard to prepare for it and I’m satisfied with the performance of the players.”
Yokohama were beaten finalists last season but are struggling in last place in Japan’s domestic league after collecting just two points from the last seven games. The club last week fired Steve Holland, a former England national team assistant to Gareth Southgate, after just four months as coach.
“To fill the void,” the club said in a statement, Australian “Patrick Kisnorbo will serve as an interim manager for the time being.”
Nassr’s Riyadh rival Al-Hilal have won a record four Asian titles and play Friday against Gwangju FC, a South Korean club making its first appearance in the tournament.
Hilal were the best performers in the ACL group stage and, as it is unlikely to catch Al-Ittihad at the top of the Saudi Pro League, are focused on their bid for a fifth continental championship.
“The Asian Champions League is a personal dream for me, as I have not yet achieved it with the team,” Hilal coach Jorge Jesus said. “It is also a dream for the fans and the club president, and we will continue to play to win every match.”
Al-Ahli are the third contenders from Saudi Arabia, and the two-time finalists are determined to lift the trophy in their home stadium in Jeddah on May 3. First, though, they must win a quarterfinal against Thai powerhouse Buriram United.
The only one of the four ties not to feature a Saudi club takes place on Sunday when two-time champions Al-Sadd of Qatar take on Kawasaki Frontale, a Japanese club looking for a first title.
Legacy showdown: Eubank Jr. and Benn finally set to settle grudge match
- More than three decades after their fathers’ fierce boxing rivalry gripped the UK, Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn will at last meet in the ring this Saturday
- Their showdown has been long delayed, after Benn’s failed drug test scuppered plans for a 2022 bout
LONDON: More than three decades after their fathers’ fierce boxing rivalry gripped the UK, Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn are set to finally meet in the ring this Saturday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Ahead of the highly anticipated clash, long delayed after Benn’s failed drug test scuppered plans for a 2022 bout, their rivalry was reignited on Tuesday during the fighters’ pre-bout “Grand Arrivals” at The Pelligon in Canary Wharf.
For both of them, this is about more than just victory; it’s about family legacies and settling unfinished business in one of British boxing’s most storied rivalries.
The tension between the two men crackled as they faced off, the long history between their families impossible to ignore. This is more than a fight; it is a continuation of a saga that began in the 1990s, when Chris Eubank Sr. and Nigel Benn fought two epic battles, splitting the loyalties of British boxing fans. Eubank Sr. won their first encounter, in 1990. The 1993 rematch ended in a bitter draw.
Their sons are now poised, perhaps, to settle the score, with both fighters promising fireworks. Eubank Jr., who has remained active in the ring since the previous plans were canceled said he is seeking “revenge” for the chaos caused by the 2022 fallout.
Benn, who has spent much of the past two years involved in legal battles to clear his name, insists he is ready to deliver a “one-sided beatdown.”
The lead-up has been far from respectful. During a press conference last month, Eubank slapped Benn with an egg in a mocking reference to the latter’s claim that contaminated eggs might have caused him to fail the drug test.
Saturday’s event is expected to draw 62,000 fans and features a packed undercard, including: Anthony Yarde vs. Lyndon Arthur (light heavyweight); Liam Smith vs. Aaron McKenna (middleweight); Chris Billam-Smith vs. Brandon Glanton (cruiserweight); and Viddal Riley vs. Cheavon Clarke (cruiserweight).
Fight week also includes many fan events, including: a media workout on Wednesday; a press conference on Thursday; the public weigh-in on Friday in Islington; and even a 5 kilometer charity run through central London on Saturday morning.
Adding a modern twist, fight night itself on Saturday will feature a theme inspired by the video game Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, merging boxing with pop culture in an attempt to broaden the event’s appeal.
NEOM SC promoted to SPL after beating Al-Arabi 3-0 in Saudi 1st Division
- A brace by Ahmad Abdo, and a goal by Saeed Bin Rahma were enough to promote the Tabuk-based club to first-tier SPL
RIYADH: NEOM Sports Club were promoted to the Roshn Saudi Pro League on Tuesday after defeating Al-Arabi Club 3-0 in the Saudi First Division.
A brace by Ahmad Abdo, and a goal by Saeed Bin Rahma were enough to promote the Tabuk-based club from the second tier of Saudi football to the first-tier SPL.
Celebrating their promotion after their win, NEOM said on X: “With the determination of heroes, we made history. Officially, Neom Sports Club is promoted to the Roshn League.”
Italy’s Serie A fixtures rescheduled due to Pope Francis’ funeral
- Lazio were to play Parma in Rome on Saturday, which has been rescheduled for Monday
- Serie A postponed Monday’s matches after the Pope’s death
ROME: Italy’s top-flight Serie A soccer league has postponed Saturday’s three fixtures until Sunday due to Pope Francis’ funeral being held that day in Rome, it said on Tuesday.
Earlier media reports had suggested that Serie A might make an exception for Inter Milan’s clash with visitors AS Roma to allow Simone Inzaghi’s side additional rest time ahead of their midweek Champions League semifinal at Barcelona.
But the league has confirmed that the game at San Siro will now kick off at 1500 local time (1300 GMT) on Sunday.
Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Monday aged 88. His funeral will be held at St. Peter’s Square in front of the Basilica of St. Peter before the burial in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.
Lazio were to play Parma in Rome on Saturday, which has been rescheduled for Monday at 2045 (1845 GMT), while Como’s home game with Genoa has been moved to Sunday at 1230 (1030 GMT).
Serie A postponed Monday’s matches after the Pope’s death, with the games rescheduled for Wednesday, and on Tuesday Italy’s National Olympic Committee (CONI) called for the suspension of all sporting events scheduled for Saturday.
Al-Nassr leave it late to defeat Damac and remain in the Saudi Pro League top 3
- 94th-minute winner gives them a 3-2 victory that moves them within 2 points of 2nd-place Al-Hilal
- Al-Ahli remain in the hunt for a top-3 spot after a 3-1 win at Al-Wehda that leaves them trailing Al-Nassr by just 2 points
There was no Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad but, in the end, that was no problem for Al-Nassr who defeated Damac 3-2 in dramatic fashion on Tuesday to move within two points of second-place Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League. A 94th-minute winner from Sultan Al-Ghannam secured the victory.
With five games left to play, Al-Ittihad top the table on 68 points, followed by Al-Hilal on 62 and Al-Nassr on 60. Al-Ahli are in fourth spot on 58 points following a 3-2 victory over Al-Wehda.
With Ronaldo being rested ahead of Saturday’s AFC Champions League quarter-final against Yokohama F. Marinos, Jhon Duran led the line for the Yellows but the goals came from less-likely sources.
It was home team Damac who opened the scoring, in the 18th minute, with an unusual goal. From a corner kick delivery, Abdelkader Bedrane produced a controlled header that sent the ball toward goal, only for it to rebound off the post, hit Ramzi Solan and bounce into the Al-Nassr goal.
It took just seven minutes for the visitors to equalize, courtesy of Aymeric Laporte’s fourth league goal of the season. Damac failed to clear a corner from the right and the Spanish defender hooked a shot through a crowded area and into the net.
Into the second half, and Ali Al-Hassan put Al-Nassr in the lead with 20 minutes remaining when he side-footed smartly into the top corner from close to the penalty spot.
The lead lasted just three minutes before it was canceled out by a goal of real quality. Dhari Al-Anazi found Nicolae Stanciu just inside the area, and the Romanian turned and fired an unstoppable shot into the top corner.
Al-Ghannam won it for Al-Nassr deep into added time, lashing home a loose ball from the edge of a crowded six-yard box.
Al-Ahli are still in the hunt for a top-three finish thanks to victory at Al-Wehda. The Jeddah giants took the lead after just six minutes after Ivan Toney headed a corner against the woodwork and Roger Ibanez was the first to react, bundling the ball home.
Galeno extended the lead just before the hour mark, and although Al-Wehda pulled one back, Riyad Mahrez sealed the victory just before the end. The Greens go into their Champions League quarter-final clash with Buriram United of Thailand on Saturday in a fine run of form, with three wins and a draw in their last four league games.
